ORGANISERS of a new regional skate competition which kicked off in Warrnambool on Saturday are hopeful it will become an annual event.

The Barwon South West ern League Skate, BMX and Scoot Series is a seven-stage competition being held in towns across the region including Heywood, Port Fairy, Torquay, Camperdown and Geelong, with the grand final in Colac.

“It was a great day and we had a fantastic spectator turnout as well, more than 300 right across the day,” he said.

“We had one female competitor who did really well, but local boys Jessie and Billy Abrahams came out on top in the open skate section.

“They both stepped up from the junior grades and did a fantastic job.

“They were also involved with the organisation of the event.”

He said it was the first time such an event had been held in the Barwon south-west region.

“We do a lot of these competitions in Melbourne but there hasn’t been anything of this scale in Barwon south-west,” he said. “It’s a step in the right direction and there have been some very passionate young guys volunteering their time to make it happen.”

Mr Hallam said the aim of the competition was to encourage participation and engagement across the three disciplines offered.

“A lot of young people from around the region have had a hand in organising each of the stages,” he said,

“It really encourages them to engage with the sport and work together.”

Mr Hallam said it was hoped the competition would become an annual event.